Where the Drum Calls Are Heartbeats: Into the Roda
Step into the swirling edge of a Roda de Samba in Rio de Janeiro and the air isn’t just thick with melody—it’s electric, buzzing, tidal. Bodies gather in one trembling orbit, voices and laughs rocking loose over the clang of a tan-tan, and the unmistakable cadence of “Palma da mão” clave, making an instrument out of their hands and chests.
The night’s perfume? Citrus, sweat, tobacco, possibility, and spilled beer. Luiz Antonio Simas, certainly one of our favorite teachers in Miamibloco, and Rio’s poetic historian, calls the roda de samba a "territory of affection and resistance," a place where music untangles the knots of the everyday and braids stories into new family. Here, Simas muses, samba isn’t performance—it’s sweet rebellion, survival, and soul. The pulse is political, communal, ancient and right now, all at once.
Roots in the Backyard, Sparks in the Night: Fundo de Quintal
Fundo de Quintal didn’t just play in the backyard—they built the house, set the fire, and invited the city in. Born in the heartbeat of Cacique de Ramos in the late 1970s, their rodas rewired samba with the snap of the tan-tan, the laughter of the cavaco, the grooves of the repique de mão. They made improvisation sacred, kinship holy, and invited everyone into their fever-bright musical kitchen. From these gatherings, samba’s “pagode” style erupted—rooted in tradition but risked everything with every crackling, midnight jam.
Miamibloco: Carrying the Flame with “Pagode de Mesa”
Forty years later and a continent away, Miamibloco Pagode de Mesa draws in Miami’s dreamers with the same wild gravity. Our rodas aren’t nostalgia—they’re portals, time machines scented with guava and saudade, open for the old school purists and the rhythm-hungry first-timers. For Brazil’s diaspora, it's Rio’s golden hour all over again; for Miami, it’s school—history class by way of dancing, massive yet elegant percussion and the entire audience singing at the top of their lungs
Every roda we build is a living heartbeat, a messy mosaic where everyone brings a piece. We teach, yes, but we also summon: the spirit of old Rio, the return of the cavaco, the laughter that defies borders, and politics. These circles crackle with the wisdom of Simas and the innovation of Fundo de Quintal, but what matters most is the fever. We aren’t just playing music; we’re keeping the culturet alive, bridging continents, teaching by making everyone move and appreciate our common ancestry, rooted in the spirit of the drum.
Catch Miamibloco’s Pagode de Mesa and join the celebration twice this Fall Season in Wynwood’s Casa La Rubia starting at 7PM (yes, really 7pm), where the vibes are always right, and the chopp is GELADISSIMO! to quench your culture and beer thirst.
Two confirmed dates at CASA LA RUBIA this Fall 2025:
Saturday October 4th
Saturday November 1st
📍 Casa La Rubia 55 NW 25th St, Miami, FL 33127
